Leave the island's tourist resorts behind and, as you climb into the mountains, you'll find sleepy, unspoilt villages, nature trails, vineyards and a host of small cheesemakers, meat curers and traditional confectioners, writes Marie-Claire Digby
Some people visit Cyprus for the beaches and the nightlife, others for the ancient monuments and historical sites. But the lure of the beach can wane after a few days, and even the most fascinating museums, churches and ruins can pale once you've reached your culture quotient. To see another side to the island, leave the coast to the sunbathers and head inland, towards the lower slopes of the Troodos Mountains, less than an hour's drive from the tourist resort of Limassol. For each kilometre you leave behind you, you'll also knock off a couple of years as far as regional development is concerned - the EU cash cow hasn't really changed the landscape here . . . yet. It's a surprisingly unspoilt region, dotted with sleepy villages strung together by a necklace of twisty, narrow roads. There are nature trails to follow, wine-producing regions to explore and, everywhere, small agritourism businesses preserving the traditional Cypriot way of life and inviting visitors to participate.
Hire a car and you can drive from village to village, sampling the region's excellent wines, handmade cheeses, cured meats and fruit preserves. The people are welcoming, and most will accept payment for their goods in euro as well as in Cypriot pounds (the changeover date is January 1st next year).
At Vlassides Winery, in the hillside village of Koilani, a former chemical engineer named Sophocles Vlassides is making award-winning wines, and cultivating rare and unusual varieties of Cypriot vines. Telephone in advance and you can sit in his courtyard, shaded by the branches of a bitter orange tree, and sip your way through his life's work. "For winemaking you need passion, talent, instinct and luck," says Vlassides, who studied oenology in California and now makes about 40,000 bottles of both red and white wine each year. His award-winners are big, butch reds - a Shiraz and a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot - but he also makes a delicate Vlassides white, worth seeking out for drinking in the sunshine. Prices range from 2.50 Cypriot pounds (about €4.50) to six Cypriot pounds (about €10.50).
Vlassides, with his modern machinery and technical knowledge, represents the progressive face of the wine business in Cyprus. But viticulture is a centuries-old tradition on the island, and Commandaria, the sweet, dark Cypriot dessert wine, was drunk by the Crusaders. It's still made today, and Kalo Chorio village has a small museum devoted to the history of this ancient wine.
If Commandaria is not to your taste, you can search out some of the local digestif, zivania, a strong, clear spirit that is made from the residue of the dessert-wine grapes. Theofilo zivania, made by the Iakovou family in Louvaras, is said to be one of the best, and here, too, visitors are welcome, by appointment, for tours of the distillery and bottling plant, and tasting sessions conducted by the redoubtable Mrs Iakovou, whose verdant flower and vegetable gardens are as much of an attraction as her spick-and-span distillery.
Before or after touring the vineyards, a visit to Cyprus Wine Museum in Erimi village, on the outskirts of Limassol, comes highly recommended. There's a film to watch, a guided tour given by its genial curator, Pambos Papadopoulos, that brings the ancient jars and vases and drinking vessels to life, and the inevitable tasting session.
Wine buffs might like to time their visit to coincide with Limassol Wine Festival, which takes place in the Municipal Gardens between August 28th and September 9th, and is, by all accounts, quite a party.
Another day trip from the coast could take you to Agros, a little higher in the Troodos Mountains but still within an hour's drive of Limassol. The village has a reasonably-priced hotel, the Rodon Mount, with a swimming pool, bar and restaurant, as well as more than 100 rooms and suites, which makes an excellent base for exploring the area. Well-marked nature trails criss-cross the hills surrounding the village, which is popular with birdwatchers and hikers as well as weekenders from Limassol. Agros is defined as a craft village, and it has many traditional shops and cottage industries making pottery, rose water, candied fruit, honey and smoked-meat products.
At Niki Agathogleous's sweet factory in the village you can see the traditional soutzouko - threaded almonds dipped in grape jelly - being made in vast bubbling vats, and all sorts of fruit being peeled, candied and bottled. More than 40 types of fruits and vegetables are used, including fragrant ... bergamot, ... pear, ... apple ... and, ... more unusually, tomatoes, carrots and aubergines, as well as walnuts. The candies are traditionally eaten after a meal, accompanied by a small glass of water to wash away some of the syrupy sweetness. The candied walnuts, which Agathogleous suggests eating alongside some hard cheese, are a local speciality; you can buy them in the small factory shop. Almost every meal eaten in Cyprus will feature halloumi cheese, usually grilled and served as part of a meze. Some of Cyprus's best halloumi and anari (a ricotta-like cheese) come from "Loula the cheesemaker". Loula, whose cheese is so good she has become a local celebrity, farms a herd of 200 goats, with her husband and seven children, on a remote hillside on the road from Limassol to Larnaca.
The family, including Loula's five-year-old son - who is the same age as her eldest grandchild - live in a tin-roofed house with few refinements, and produce up to 15kg of cheese a day from a rudimentary dairy attached to their home. And what cheese - better by far than anything you'll find in any shop. A constant stream of customers comes through the farm gate to stock up on the fresh cheese, stored outside on the terrace in a wire-mesh cheese safe, and selling for five Cypriot pounds (about €9) a kilo.
To find Loula, ask for directions in Tochni or call to reception at the attractive Agritourism Village, a holiday development where Cyprus Villages has traditional villas, houses and apartments for rent, some integrated into the fabric of this old stone village, others grouped around the tavern, reception area and pool. Management can arrange for guests to join in the olive harvest (November to March) and see olive mills in action.
The Cyprus Villages holiday rentals in Tochni are traditional, stone-built Cypriot-style houses and apartments, ideal for an away-from-it-all break. But if you are looking for a bit more action, and some pampering, the Londa hotel, on the outskirts of Limassol, is well placed for day trips to the mountains. One of Cyprus's first boutique hotels, the Londa has an infinity pool, private beach, stylish lounge and comfortable, quirky bedrooms, many with stunning sea views. The sophisticated modern European food at the Londa's Caprice restaurant, created by a Swedish chef named Patric Steklmacher, is a delicious counterpoint to the rustic fare you'll have enjoyed up in the hills, and confirms that there is something for everyone in Cyprus. GETTING THERE
Package holidays and flights to Cyprus are available through tour operators during the summer months. From the end of October, direct flights to Cyprus are available from Eurocypria Airlines (www.eurocypria.com). If you are planning a holiday in Cyprus, useful assistance is available from Cyprus Tourism Organisation (01-6629269, www.visitcyprus.com).
meze moments
Cypriot cuisine, a meld of Greek and Middle Eastern influences, is a celebration of all that grows, grazes and swims. This is an island where people eat local and eat well - food miles are not an issue here.
The word meze, short for mezedhes, means delicate taste, or little delicacies, but there's nothing little or delicate about the bountiful array of dishes that comprises a typical Cypriot meze. Starting with cracked green olives marinaded with coriander seeds, and progressing to tomato, cucumber, feta cheese and black-olive-studded salads and warm flatbreads - served with dips that will invariably include smooth, rich hummus and smoky taramasalata - it's hard not to overindulge.
But the trick is to pace yourself: this is just the beginning of a long journey.
Still to come are vast platters of grilled meats (pork and lamb, rubbed with oregano and drizzled with local olive oil; slices of fried halloumi; dolmades (vine leaves stuffed with minced pork); keftedes (meatballs); lountza (smoked pork); souvlaki (kebabs) and oven-baked dishes such as moussaka or pastitsio (pasta with cinnamon-scented mince, topped with bechamel sauce).
And it's not over yet. Just when you think you can't eat another morsel, platters of filo delicacies filled with curd cheese and drizzled with honey; gem-like candied fruits; and perhaps some rose-water- scented milk puddings will be produced.
If you're by the sea, a fish meze will involve a similarly lavish display, and the cost of such vast banquets is surprisingly low. You'll pay about 10 Cypriot pounds (about €17.50) for a complete meat meze and a little more for fish. Whichever type you choose, the chances are that it will be of excellent quality and reasonably priced.
Cyprus Tourism Organisation keeps a watching brief on all of the island's restaurants, which are obliged to submit their menus for price checks.
The tourism body is also campaigning to preserve and promote traditional Cypriot cooking, through an iniative called Vakhis, which inspects and certifies restaurants that meet its criteria. There are 10 Vakhis-certified taverns to date; a list is available from Cyprus Tourism Organisation, www.visitcyprus.org.cy, 01-6629269.
GETTING IN TOUCH
Vlassides Winery Koilani, 00-357-25-352997
Theofilo zivania distillery Louvaras, 00-357-25-542130
Cyprus Wine Museum Erimi, Limassol, www.cypruswinemuseum.com
Rodon Mount Hotel & Resort Agros, 00-357-25-521201, www.rodonhotel.com
Agritourism Village Tochni, 00-357-24-332998, www.cyprusvillages.com.cy
Londa hotel Limassol, 00-357-25-865555, www.londahotel.com
GETTING THERE
Package holidays and flights to Cyprus are available through tour operators during the summer months. From the end of October, direct flights to Cyprus are available from Eurocypria Airlines ( www.eurocypria.com). If you are planning a holiday in Cyprus, useful assistance is available from Cyprus Tourism Organisation (01-6629269, www.visitcyprus.com).